Restaurant Executive: Adrien Desbaillets, President SaladStop!

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Stephen Jagger

As part of a new series on this blog [Retail / Restaurant Executive] we will be interviewing restaurant and retail executives from all over the world to gain insight and perspective into how they make their decisions, grow their businesses and deal with challenges.

Adrien of SaladStop Today is Adrien Desbaillets the President at SaladStop!

Q. When and why did you start Salad Stop?

We started SaladStop! In November 2009 and our motto is “Eat Wide Awake”. Simply put we want to change the way people think about their food.

Q. What is your background? (restaurants? or you figured it out as you went?)

I grew up in the hotel industry as my father spent many years with InterContinental and Shangri-La so I guess that it must be in the blood! We travelled around the world and some of my fondest childhood memories are in the back of a hotel kitchen. I graduated from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University and continued as a consultant in the hospitality sector. I most recently worked for Kingdom Hotel Investments, spearheading all investment opportunities for the group in China. I moved back to Singapore during the financial crisis and we decided that we want to bring something fresh and healthy to Singapore. No one was presenting salads the way we were.

Q. How many locations do you have?

We have 12 in Singapore and we just opened our second location a few weeks ago in the Philippines at Rockwell and are scheduled to open a few more locations by the end of the year there.

Q. How do you choose a location?

We choose our locations based on a multitude of factors but most importantly, we need high volume areas with a strong concentration of office buildings. SaladStop! is still mainly a lunch concept and we rely a lot on strong office demand.

Q. Will you ever take a sub-par location, if it is in an area you want to be in? or will you wait for the right spot?

We generally will never consider a sub-par location but have opened locations in new developments which might take a longer time to mature. These locations take a long-term view but can also give us a first mover advantage. Otherwise, we will wait for the right spot and market conditions.

Q. How big is a standard location? What have you learned about location size?

Our standard locations vary between 500 – 800 square feet. We have learned that our locations can be smaller with the support of a centralized kitchen and efficient spacial planning.

Q. Does a corner location matter?

A corner location is preferrable but visibility, accessibility and traffic are more important. A strong corner location is a bonus but we generally don’t consider this as a criteria.

Q. Are malls better? or street level locations?

This varies greatly in Singapore and Manila as malls can be a destination in itself and provide a constant traffic flow while street level locations can provide additional visibility and peak-hour traffic.

Q. At what point did the number of locations change how the business is run? I have been told, 1 or 2 locations is ok, but 3+ requires a different management approach, systems, procedures, etc. What was the tipping point for you?

We learnt that the tipping point is close to 5 locations. The economies of scale at that point bring a number of benefits but a strong infrastructure is required to support the operation. Overheads start to escalate and a strong focus on SOPs, training, technology is required.

SaladStop! Journey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Fu9vaJXJM8

Giving credit to the ‘little guy’ in your company

Posted on May 28, 2015 by

The PayrollHero Way
Giving credit where credit is due is an important task for managers to keep the morale of their employees up. Employees like to be noticed and praised for a job well done.

Why are managers not giving enough praise? Besides the fact that you are busy running around, taking care of daily operations; making sure everything is running as it should, finding out which employee did well for the last 4 weeks will take more effort. Most of the time, this task is not on the top of the priority list and so easily overlooked.

PayrollHero can help you look good to your employees!

Surely there are times where you wish you would have remembered to at least say ‘Good Job’ to Bob the cashier for working 8 hours and being the most helpful. Human errors like this can be avoided by using a simple app, where you can monitor your employees day to day work and track how they are performing accurately.

By using the employee feedback app, Daily Pulse, employees are able to ‘like’ their colleagues that was the most helpful at the end of the shift. Another plus, your customer can give their feedback using the Customer Feedback app too- by voting for the employee that was the most helpful to them.

You, the manager, will receive the data in real time via Xray Insights app. The app will show a clearer view of each employee performance and tracks the employee who is getting the most ‘likes’ on that particular shift. Information is readily available for you at a touch of a button. This makes your job so much easier! It also eliminate subjectivity in your decision as it is based on figures- not hearsay.

Work Place Transparency

At PayrollHero, we want to break the conventional workplace hierarchy by making information more transparent within the company. Using mobile or web apps, all managers can readily access whatever information required anytime, anywhere. We recognize that being on the ball is important when running a business- so time should not be wasted on you waiting for information from other managers.

The Data Might Even Surprise You!

You may be glad to find out that the employee that is actually doing great is the person you least expect. It could very well be the person who is clearing the dishes- that is the most helpful employee among the rest and the most ‘likeable’ to your customers.

The app works by making sure every employee is acknowledged, from the chef to the janitor. You can be the best manager who knows exactly the deserving employees to give credit to at the end of the day.

Read our post on Scheduling Best Practices for Managers.

Want to learn how to be a better manager?

Join our next Meetup on 10th Jun 2015 @ 4pm in Singapore.

We will be focusing on tips and tools you can use to better optimize HR and payroll processes, while cutting costs on time and creating a happier work culture.

To register >>>

Part I on Cloud Computing: 3 Reasons Why Your Business Should Use Cloud Computing Now

Posted on May 26, 2015 by Pragya Gupta

Cloud Computing, by definition, is “the practice of using a network of remote servers hosted on the Internet to store, manage and process data, rather than a local server or a personal computer.”

Let’s be honest, that sounds terribly boring. And you’re probably wondering: I don’t even know what half of that means.

As an intro to cloud computing, take a look at the infographic we have for you. Now, let’s talk about why your business needs to upgrade its IT infrastructure and adopt cloud computing with arms wide open. Using cloud computing services helps you increase efficiency, cut down on costs, and change the way you do business.

Demand-Supply management: Cloud computing gives you the opportunity to be ridiculously client focussed using big data and data analytics. Imagine owning a gaming store that sold console games. If Game A was trending that week and Game B was not doing so well, data analytics would allow you to identify that trend, allowing you to stock up accordingly. Not only would you improve sales, you would manage inventory better and improve your turnover rates. For your business to be flexible and sustainable, you need solid data to back up your decisions. Cloud computing offers insight into your customer’s preferences. Using this data will give you the competitive advantage that you need.

Cost reductions:

By using the Cloud, you can cut costs by moving from the CAPEX model to the OPEX model. This is particularly useful for companies that have a high debt burden. Initial capital expenditure on IT assets or building your IT infrastructure is not fully deductible, which leads to higher taxes. On the other hand, operating expenses on running services through the cloud are fully tax deductible. By moving your system to the cloud, you will be able to free up capital for other investments.
There is another benefit to cloud computing on your balance sheet. Think about the IT infrastructure you have set up for your business. You have 10 servers that work perfectly well on a regular basis. All of a sudden, during a special discount that you are promoting through your website, you notice greater traffic. Now you need 5 more servers to sustain the traffic. However, the investment is too expensive for the limited amount of time that you are using it for. If you could rent and pay for servers for just a short period of time, wouldn’t that make more sense than investing in assets that will not pay off in the long run?

Remote-monitoring: This one is easy. By using the Cloud, you can access your company’s data anywhere and at any time. When you’re on that much needed holiday in the tropics, your spreadsheets back home will be of no use to you. With Cloud Computing, you can get back to your business at a moment’s notice and respond to any emergency, all this while sipping on some mai tais and preparing for the beach volleyball game.

Now, if you already knew all of the above, then you have probably contemplated the next question. What about security? We understand, recent security breaches that have led to disasters for some companies do not instil confidence in what we are talking about. Sensitive information is at risk when you are using Cloud Computing. But here is what’s important for your business: if IT is not your core competency, then no matter how much you invest in security, a company that rents out servers probably has a more secure system in place. Again, this is about how you want to use your resources to focus on your business.

Singapore is a great example on how Small to Medium sized Businesses (SMBs) have adopted cloud computing. Cloud Comrade, a company that provides solutions on cloud management, says that around 63% of businesses in Singapore turn to companies like Cloud Comrade for cloud technology solutions. Singapore is one of the fastest adopters of cloud computing services.

Altogether, the reasons for cloud computing, especially for SMBs was put very simply by Pavel Ershov, Parallels’ vice president of service providers business for the Asia Pacific and Japan regions:

“SMBs today have the best of both worlds to help them grow their businesses–cloud services offerings with enterprise-grade capabilities at affordable costs”

Southeast Asia Cloud Computing Infographic (PayrollHero.com) from PayrollHero

Want to learn more about PayrollHero? Check out our country specific websites:
Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand | Canada, USA

Scheduling Practices: Hallway Test!

Posted on May 22, 2015 by Pragya Gupta

Today marks two weeks of my internship at PayrollHero. To celebrate my two-week-erversary, I went out to do a little survey. The aim was to understand what systems businesses have set up to manage scheduling, measure attendance and calculate payrolls.

2015-05-21 16.04.44__1432268258_115.42.154.34

The Costa Coffee crew.

I surveyed 10 cafés in the Central Business District in Singapore to find out how they schedule workers in their outlets. Some of the outlets I visited were Cedele, Starbucks, Joe & Dough and Costa Coffee. They all had similar systems set up to schedule workers, with a few interesting anomalies:

With the exception of one cafe, everyone uses the punch card system or a regular excel sheet for workers to clock in and clock out. The exception in question has software set up to monitor attendance.
Scheduling is done on a weekly basis. The worst case scenario is when a worker notifies the admin that he or she can’t show up just a few hours before the shift begins.
Usually, the outlet manager calls another outlet to find a substitute. In the case of one cafe, Whatsapp groups are used to coordinate and find substitutes. Most outlet managers believe that the best way to reach someone is to call them. Texting or emailing is not a common communication channel.
The HR admin in every outlet takes around 2 to 3 days to calculate payrolls.

With that simple survey, it was evident that cafés in Singapore use conventional ways to schedule shifts. While workers rarely drop shifts, outlet managers need to be on standby to call nearby outlets for substitutes immediately.

Using Data Analytics to Improve Productivity

When the weather is bad, or there is an MRT breakdown, the situation is worse because all outlets in the same region are affected equally. While an outlet manager is calling multiple outlets for substitutes, customers are walking in and waiting for service before walking out, disappointed and unhappy. That directly affects the bottom line. Managers should be able to access an online database and use data analytics to see which outlet is on top of things in real time in order to call that outlet directly and ask for a substitute.

The top priority for every outlet manager is to make sure the day runs smoothly. It becomes much harder when the manager is not equipped with the right data to plan ahead of time. In a country like Singapore that has high internet penetration rates and high cell phone penetration rates, installing an application that stores this data in the cloud is easy and inevitable. If managers had access to this data, it would also be a way to motivate workers to be regular in order to move higher up in the rankings among outlets.

Calculating Payrolls

The systems put in place for measuring hours worked per employee in order to calculate payrolls should also be revamped. It should not take a manager 2 or 3 days to calculate payrolls when she has a million other things to look after. What’s more, the hassle of buddy punching, human errors and shifts in multiple locations add to complications for the manager. More errors equal higher costs. Higher costs equal lower profits. The bottom line is affected by inefficiencies that can be wiped out by a one-time change in the basic infrastructure.

Finally, the idea behind having an app that does all of the above is predicated on increasing productivity: be it that of your rank and file workers or your manager. Higher productivity leads to a better workplace environment and happier people, which further leads to higher productivity. That is a virtuous cycle, if ever I saw one. In effect: optimizing work productivity with happiness.

Now, where have I heard that before…

Restaurant Jobs and Salaries in Singapore

Posted on May 22, 2015 by Pragya Gupta

Life on the Line is a book written by Grant Achatz, owner and chef of the best restaurant in the world: Alinea. The book is about how Grant rose through the ranks to finally become an executive chef and a pioneer in molecular gastronomy. I loved the book. Not only was it a remarkable story about perseverance, it gave a glimpse of what it means to work in a restaurant.

While reading the book, you get an idea of what happens behind the scenes. Like every other restaurant, Alinea has the regular mix of members on the team: a general manager, restaurant manager, executive chef, sous chef, commis, sommelier, the captain waiter, regular waiters, bartender. The whole orchestra.

Most of this was new to me. My knowledge on restaurants went as far as:

Waiter;
Chef;
Food

And that’s about it.

So a breakdown on how restaurants work from a management perspective was an eye-opener to say the least. Naturally, restaurants around the world have the same structure. Singapore is no different. Given below is a little summary of the standard jobs in any restaurant. Not all restaurants have all the components. Most hiring admins in restaurants go by this convention:

General Manager: The CEO of the restaurant. She makes sure things run smoothly. She oversees operations, makes sure supplies arrive on time and hiring and firing activities run smoothly. She tries to cut costs and improve sales too.

Restaurant Manager: He makes sure that training of new employees runs smoothly. He deals with customers, allocates manpower and deals with the maintenance of the place.

Maître d’: She manages the front of house operations. By maintaining the customer database, the maître d’ makes bookings. She also welcomes customers as they enter the restaurant.

Executive chef: The executive chef creates new dishes and plans the menu for every outlet. He looks after the overall direction of the restaurant or outlet.

Head Chef (chef de cuisine): The head chef is the CEO of the kitchen. She allocates duties and ensures there are supplies. She manages daily operations in the kitchen.

Sous Chef: The second in command. He works under the head chef and makes sure things run smoothly in case the head chef is not around. He also ensures the quality of supplies coming in.

Chef de Partie: This is a chef who is in charge of a particular section: grill, pastry, whatever was allocated to her. She makes sure the cooks under him deliver what is required from the section.

Sommelier: Everyone loves the wine guy. He is an expert on wine and food pairing. He maintains the inventory, trains the staff on what wines to suggest and teaches them the convention on serving wine.

Head Waiter: A head waiter is in charge of other waiters/waitresses. She trains them. She also waits on tables and suggests dishes and wine pairings.

Waiter: He waits on tables. He also suggests dishes from the menu. Waiters are trained on how to serve the dishes and the wine that goes with them.

With that crash course on who is who in a restaurant, below we have a table on their average monthly salary in Singapore. This varies based on the location of the restaurant and the type of restaurant.

Title	Salary/Month (SGD)
General Manager	4,000
Restaurant Manager	3,200
Restaurant Assistant Manager	2,500
Executive Chef	7,400
Head Chef	4,000
Sous Chef	3,100
Chef De Partie	2,200
Sommelier	3,000
Captain Waiter/Waitress	1,800
Waiter/Waitress	1,500

We hope this gives you a better idea on the industry!

Restaurant Executive: Andrew Masigan, The Advent Manila Hospitality Group

Posted on May 21, 2015 by Stephen Jagger

Today is Andrew Masigan, owner of The Advent Manila Hospitality Group in the Philippines.

Q. When and why did you start Advent?
I guess you can say that Advent is a reincarnated company. Advent was the name of my first company, just after finishing my Masters program. Back then, it was a sole proprietorship that served as the company behind my first fast food chain, Dimsum ‘n Dumplings. Soon enough, the company grew to a point where it didn’t make sense to pay personal income tax rates for my business profits. I then decided to retire it. In its place, Prime Pacific Corp. was put together as the corporate entity of Dimsum ‘n Dumplings. Fast forward to 2010 and Prime Pacific Corp. was acquired by another firm. I was done with the food business…or so I thought.

The thing with the food business is that, difficult as it is, it is so damn gratifying. It is a business that feeds your mind, soul (through creativity) and stomach, all in one go. Its true what they say — once a foodie, always a foodie.

In 2011, we decided to venture into the restaurant business all over again, this time, making a strong push for Filipino cuisine. The idea was to come up with a Filipino restaurant that was high-end in very sense, debunking the notion that Filipino food was “pedestrian” or suited only for the home.

We launched XO46 Heritage Bistro later that year. It is an advocacy-driven brand whose purpose is to bring forward the best of Filipino cuisine while being an instrument to preserve our vanishing food heritage (no thanks to the influx of fusion cuisine).

XO46 was incorporated under the Advent Manila Hospitality Group. This is our company today. So in a sense, Advent has come full circle.

Q. What is your background? (restaurants? or you figured it out as you went?)
I am somewhat of a strange mutt. I am an economist by training…politics is my interest…the hospitality industry is where my expertise lie.

This strange mix is the reason why I am a restaurateur, a business and political columnist for the Manila Bulletin, a tv host (The Business Examiner) and a consultant to the Department of Science & Technology.

At the heart of it all is my passion to be an instrument to nation building, whether through business, politics or media. I guess you can say that this is what unifies everything that I’m into.

Q. How many locations do you have in the Philippines?
Dimsum ‘N Dumplings peaked at 88 stores, although most were kiosk outlets.

Our restaurant group today consist of 14 stores, with two more under construction and due to open before year-end.

Q. How do you choose a location?
Pretty much the same way most restaurateurs do.

We consider foot traffic, the profile of customers, the merchant mix and the competitive environment.

Q. Will you ever take a sub-par location, if it is in an area you want to be in? or will you wait for the right spot?
I would rather wait for the right spot. If there is anything I’ve learned being in this business for 2 decades — its that, “the bottom line” is the bottom line! In other words, if a site is not going to make money…lets not waste our time.

Q. How big is a standard location? What have you learned about location size?
XO46 works with spaces ranging from 120 sqm to 240 sqm.

Q. Does a corner location matter?
It’s a plus but not a deal breaker.

Q. Are malls better? or street level locations?
Good question. It really depends.

The value that the malls give is that it is a destination on its own; it has inherent foot traffic (assuming the mall is not a dud); security is more or less assured; and your brand gets to ride on the image of the mall and the surrounding merchants.

On the downside, mall spaces are relatively expensive to rent, they limit your operating hours and give you restrictions on your product offerings and store design.

The advantages of street locations are the disadvantage of malls, and vice versa.

Fortunately, I know the business well enough that I can still manage our stores with relative personal involvement.

The trick is to put the important systems in place – I’m referring to systems relating to operations, HR and accounting & control.

Beyond 20 stores, the emphasis shifts from personal management & creativity to professionalization. In other words, the efficiency your company’s chain-of-command largely determines how well your stores operate. In addition, logistical issues migrate to the forefront of your business concerns.

Q. Anything you would like to add?
The integration of ASEAN come Jan 1, 2016 will change the industry.

Given the impending borderless trading conditions within the region, we will see the best restaurants groups from each of the 10 economies “invade” other territories, jockeying for a piece of their market.

I would like XO46 to be on the offensive, not on the defensive, in this new environment. After all, the time is right for Filipino cuisine to be exported, don’t you think?

eileen picture company
Want to read more from our executive contributors, check out Eileen Grey, owner of The Picture Company in the Philippines.

Retail Executive: Eileen Grey, The Picture Company

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Stephen Jagger

First up is Eileen Grey, owner of The Picture Company in the Philippines.

Q. When and why did you start The Picture Company?
A. In 2002, I was a new mom to 2 little boys and I wanted every moment frozen in time through photos. My search led me to dark photo studios. The photographers did not enjoy interacting with my babies to capture precious moments for me and my family. Within 6 months of that search, we opened our first “home” in The Podium Mall in the Philippines. We made a studio where kids and moms can feel at home, not just with the surroundings but with their personal photographers as well. Bright studios were put up, colored backgrounds, lots of play and fun. Our aim was to create magic in our studios everyday. Today, we continue to love what we do. We love babies and we love creating keepsakes for your family. The Picture Company has grown but we still keep it personal – just like the first day we opened our doors more than a decade ago.

Q. What is your background? (retail? or you figured it out as you went?)
A. My background is hotel management. I figured it out with the help of EO members that served as my mentors.

Q. How many locations do you have in the Philippines?
A. We have 9 locations across the Philippines. (The Podium Mall, Greenbelt 5, Power Plant Mall, Alabang Town Center, Glorietta 4, C1 Bonifacio High Street Central, Shangri-la Plaza and Ayala Center Cebu)

Q. How do you choose a location for The Picture Company?
A. We look for malls that appreciate our product. Locations that have a lot of foot traffic for families and strollers.

Q. Will you ever take a sub-par location, if it is in an area you want to be in? or will you wait for the right spot?
A. We will always wait for the right spot. Our business is a weekend business (when the parents can go to the malls) and we have limited number of hours to do business (we can take maximum of 8 sessions a day for only 2 days a week), it is too risky to take a sub par location.

Q. How big is a Picture Company location? What have you learned about store size?
A. Our stores range from 36m2 to 120m2. In the beginning, we kept getting a bigger space to accommodate strollers and nannies and extended family, but we realised that when the store is big, it also lacks coziness. More attention is given to the customer when the space is just right. Another thing we need to consider is the malls have doubled and tripled their rental rates.

Q. Does a corner location matter for The Picture Company?
A. No. Of course good foot traffic is important but it doesn’t necessarily have to be a corner store.

Q. Are malls better? or street level locations?
A. We were successful in locations like Podium and Rockwell where clients expressed they feel safe. So when we first went street level like Bonifacio High Street, we were taking a chance. It turned out okay. A little warm and exposed to the weather changes like rain. More dirt comes in which isn’t friendly for a baby environment but it worked.

Q. At what point did the number of stores change how the business is run? I have been told, 1 or 2 stores is ok, but 3+ requires a different management approach, systems, procedures, etc. What was the tipping point for The Picture Company?
A. You are very correct! It was very personal and mom and pop until 3 stores. And then I had to consider personnel, training, back office space, production, logistics, etc.

Q. Anything you would like to add?
A. I wish we could locate The Picture Company in more spaces but new malls sprouting up (or the ones renovating) are creating bigger spaces and bringing up rent because of the international brands coming in. I wish they would always make spaces for the Filipino retailers so we have character in our malls and not look like every other mall with the same big brands. We also need to help the Filipino retailers thrive in their own country. I think the fight for all these brands to enter the malls is making every mall look alike and not offer anything new for its customers.

– Thanks to Eileen for participating!

Would you like to be profiles in our Retail Executive series. Reach out by commenting on this blog post or emailing support at payrollhero .com.

Are you interested in learning more about PayrollHero? Our payroll software is live in the Philippines and Singapore and our Time & Attendance solution is used all over the world.